It is a surname of German, Prussian, and Yiddish (Ashkenazi Jewish) origin.
The word means "big", "tall" or "great", and was likely adopted in Europe over the 15th to 19th centuries during the times of the House of Habsburg when monarchs of the royal families (Emperor or Empress) were called "the Great" (der Große).
German-speaking Christian hymns use references to Jesus as "Mein Herr ist Groß" (My Lord is Great) or "So Groß ist der Herr" (So Great is the Lord).
Composer Franz Schubert (1797–1828) wrote several songs referring to Jesus or God as groß, such as D 757, a quartet called "Gott in der Natur" (Groß ist der Herr!)
in 1822 and D 852, "Die Allmacht" (Groß ist Jehova, der Herr) in 1825.